A review by ptune
Buda's Wagon: A Brief History of the Car Bomb by Mike Davis

4.0

a challenging book, which complicates my own understanding of the most pervasive weapon of my own lifetime. despite its supposedly noble beginnings as a weapon waged against worthy targets (fascists, royalty), the car bomb has, according to Davis, devolved into something far more sinister, far more fascistic, far more reactionary. it’s no coincidence that the greatest disseminators of car bomb tech and logistics are governments (CIA, Pakistani ISI, Saudi intelligence) rather than the terrorist cells themselves. no number of worthy anti-market, anti-imperial, anti-fascist bombs can make up for the incredible, incalculable losses these same bombs have produced at the hands of any number of capitalist nation states, fascistic militias, or imperial campaigns. it’s tricky, I’m not sure I have a complete grasp.